Traditional affordable housing is expensive, time-consuming

Share this:

Bill Kurnizki, Robert Trausch and Dave Hollingsworth try to get one tiny house ready to be transported Oct. 21, 2018, to a nearby church at the Tiny Home Build-Off hosted by the Chico Housing Action Team in Chico. CHAT members are hoping to use more solutions like tiny homes in current projects to address homelesness in 2020. (Bianca Quilantan -- Enterprise-Record file)

Murphy Commons is one of the apartment complexes built by CHIP that accepts Section 8 vouchers. The complex is currently full. (Community Housing Improvement Program -- Contributed)

Maple Park Senior Apartments in Live Oak was the last approved multifamily project by CHIP. The program's organizers hope to get a new senior living project in Chico approved by 2021.(Eric Johnson, Community Housing Improvement Program -- Contributed)

CHICO — After fires and hikes in land prices, as demand for housing accelerates, the meaning of affordable housing has changed dramatically in Chico in the past few years.

When housing is scarce and new options are increasingly expensive (Zillow’s current rent index shows Chico’s average rent at $1,800 per month), the rate of homelessness in a city increases. Seen all over California, this phenomenon has hit Chico, a semi-urban center in a rural area, with a unique intensity.

For housing to be considered affordable, it has to be possible to afford the unit in question with less than 30% of a person’s annual income. In 2018, 43% of Californians were low income (earning below 80% of the needed income) and 80.4% of low-income residents are overburdened, or spending more than 30% of their monthly income on rent.

Affordable housing is more difficult to find than ever before in Chico, where rents are rising and the majority of jobs are in the office, sales and administrative support occupations, with hourly rather than salary wages.

The city of Chico is working on one affordable housing project to house 100 seniors. However, this low-income housing is not likely to take shape until 2021, according to Maria Demers, of Chico’s housing department.

While the project is an opportunity to improve the availability of affordable units, waiting until 2021 is not possible for some residents living on fixed income, Demers said.

Meanwhile, most market-rate housing projects under active construction are all “luxury” multifamily units. Community Development Director Tony Lindsey said that more housing is needed for families to move from their existing housing into larger homes — in theory, “opening up” lower-level housing.

Homes stalled

Affordable housing has many obstacles that make it difficult for many unsheltered individuals to wait for. Seana O’Shaughnessy, CEO of Community Housing Improvement Program, said if a project was not underway before the Camp Fire, “it could take years and years.”

“People need housing now,” O’Shaughnessy said, citing data from the Los Angeles Homeless Authority which put Chico’s homelessness rate of 1% at about the same rate as L.A.

Getting state tax credits for projects is very competitive and time-consuming. Expensive land and a slow road to approval both complicate state-funded affordable housing projects, which is partly why CHIP’s last approved multi-family project was the 2016 Maple Park Senior Apartments in Live Oak.

Despite these difficulties, O’Shaughnessy said working with Chico and the Housing Authority has been a great resource, “incredibly creative and incredibly supportive.”

“I think the city has been pretty amazing with how they partner with others with the land they have,” O’Shaughnessy said.

Creative solutions

A less traditional solution for housing is needed for those cannot wait or qualify for Section 8 housing — government funded public housing and housing choice vouchers.

Bob Trausch, who gently suggested that current measures by the city don’t take into account the reality of housing, is the founding board member of Chico Housing Action Team, a nonprofit housing solution.

Trausch insists that despite claims that the economy has “improved,” “there aren’t jobs” that will pay a single person enough to be able to afford most rents in Chico — let alone the two- to three-months’ rent requirement to be accepted into many units. In addition, the major issues with Section 8 homes are the state’s lack of funding and not enough houses available for those with vouchers, Trausch said.

CHAT organizer Charles Withuhn said there are over 40 homes in management to house around 50 people, with just four in active construction.* The organization has helped 150 people, through four different programs, to find shelter and no longer live on the street. The organization helps people with some form of income who cannot get into a home, often because they cannot afford rent or do not have sufficient income to be accepted into housing.

The main concern for many vulnerable people is being able to find housing that will accept their level of income, Trausch said. Many have fixed income or a part-time job at or near minimum wage, and cannot get accepted to many types of housing at current rates in Chico.

The Landlord Incentive Program is another CHIP solution for helping families find homes in areas where landlords might not otherwise accept them. Otherwise, in response to rising prices and high demand, landlords are unlikely to take in anyone below the stable income rate.

Trausch thinks the Butte County Continuum of Care is doing a good job to find new, creative solutions for housing, such as high-density and infill homes. Unfortunately, there’s work to be done on behalf of sheltering vulnerable populations, he said.

For example, the proposed Simplicity Village project, designed to house seniors, is stalled due to involvement in a lawsuit against the city of Chico.

One of Trausch’s suggestions has to do with Enloe Medical Center. Treating homeless patients who do not have insurance of sufficient funds costs the hospital, fire department and police department thousands, Trausch said.

Trausch said he and other advocates proposed a solution for Enloe — a house where patients can be sent to live and pay $500 per month.

Trausch hopes that alongside CHAT’s other programs underway, this project can move forward and help support temporary housing for those using the hospital for help.

However, this solution is only possible for some, as Chico heads into spring with an average 1% homelessness rate and shelters that are often full. Trausch thinks more shelter beds won’t help in the long run — the city will have to find more housing options quickly.

“The main thing for folks is to get into a place,” Trausch said. “Housing is always the best option.”

Chico’s Housing Authority Department did not respond to multiple attempts at contact for this story.

*A previous version of this story said CHAT had more units in construction than it does.

Natalie Hanson covers the city of Chico, seniors and general assignments for the Chico Enterprise-Record after previously editing and writing for A&E. She has written and edited for multiple publications including The Orion at Chico State and is studying journalism and international relations. She is passionate about student journalism, covering the community and quality coffee.